Thurs.’s Devo - Cities of Refuge

Read Numbers 34; 35:1–8; 36
Today we read about a number of things but I want to talk about two of them: the towns for the Levites and the cities of refuge.
The Levites were to have cities allotted to them in the center of each tribe’s inheritance. The bigger the tribe the more land they were to allot for the Levites to have towns. The Levites were the “set apart” priests in charge of the presence of the Lord and the worship and sacrifices of the people. This shows us in a picture why we are placed where we are. If we are set apart for God’s service then we are a Levite and God will specifically place us in the land we are to occupy and minister from.
Six of these Levite cities were to be cities of refuge where the innocent could flee. If someone accidentally killed a person but had no witness to testify for him he could run to these cities, present his case and if he was allowed in he would be safe from the avenger of blood until the death of the high priest. Then he could go back to his inheritance. This is a picture of salvation. Salvation is the city of refuge we run to. Jesus, as our High Priest, sets us free to enjoy our inheritance. It is also a picture of what happened to those who died in the Old Testament before Jesus’ resurrection. God had cities of refuge under the earth - in Hades just for the innocent that died. They were safe there until the death of the High Priest - Jesus. Jesus died on Passover but he didn’t rise till the third day. So, what did he do in that time before he went to heaven? He went down to Hades and preached captivity captive. He rescued those in the cities of refuge where they awaited his release. The burial ground for all the patriarchs later became a city of refuge. After Jesus’ resurrection, many people saw their deceased loved ones walking the streets of Jerusalem. (Matthew 27:53)
I know this might sound a little far-fetched if this is the first time you have heard this but if you let it settle in your spirit I think you will get some understanding. I asked the Lord one night where the people like Abraham went when they died since Jesus was the first to rise from the dead and I knew they didn’t go to heaven. The next morning I woke up to “Cities of Refuge” being spoken almost audibly in my head. I asked the Lord what that was and he told me it was the answer to the question I had asked him. I had to think a minute to remember what I had asked him but he reminded me. I got up and started studying cities of refuge for hours. This is my conclusion.
Lord, thank you for being our refuge and our salvation. Thank you for your resurrection power!